Apple's 'stumbling block' in Amazon Appstore case

A judge has said that Apple has a "stumbling block" in struggling to find proof that it is causing confusion in the market.

Apple is unlikely to win the case against Amazon over the use of the name "app store", after the judge said that Apple has a "stumbling block" in struggling to find proof that it is causing confusion in the market.

The battle isn't over yet, but according to a report by Businessweek, during a hearing on Thursday, US District Judge Phyllis Hamilton said that she is "probably" going to dismiss Apple's bid against Amazon, and told the company she is "troubled by the showing that you've made so far."

Apple filed suit against Amazon in March this year, days before Amazon opened its Appstore for Android, on the basis that it would cause confusion among consumers. Amazon has argued that the use of the term "app store" is too generic to cause confusion, and consumers will understand the difference because Amazon offers apps for Android rather than Apple's iOS platform.

Amazon is not the only company that say the term "app store" is too generic for a company to hold a trademark, in January Microsoft filed a motion with the US Patent and Trademark Office saying the same thing. Apple responded in its own filing saying: "Microsoft, missing the forest for the trees, does not base its motion on a comprehensive evaluation of how the relevant public understands the term App Store as a whole."